A display apparatus including a liquid crystal panel as an image display unit is configured in such a manner that a backlight is disposed on a rear surface side of the liquid crystal panel, and light emitted from the backlight is modulated and transmitted by the liquid crystal panel so as to display an image on a front surface of the liquid crystal panel. The backlight is broadly divided into a direct type and an edge light type, but in recent years, to reduce power consumption and thin a frame, the edge light type backlight is widely employed.
The edge light type backlight includes a light guide plate and a light source which are housed in a backlight chassis formed in a shallow bottom box shape. The light guide plate is a flat plate made of glass or a translucent resin material, and is placed on a bottom plate of the backlight chassis. The light source is attached to one side wall of the backlight chassis to face one side of the light guide plate. Light emitted from the light source enters the one side of the light guide plate and progresses in the light guide plate, and then the light is distributed and emitted throughout the entirety of one broad surface of the light guide plate which is exposed to an opening side of the backlight chassis.
The display apparatus has a configuration in which the one broad surface of the light guide plate is arranged to face the rear surface of the liquid crystal panel, and optical sheets are interposed between the surfaces facing each other. The optical sheet is an optical element which performs light diffusing and light collecting actions. The light emitted from the light guide plate is irradiated to the liquid crystal panel via the optical sheet.
A display apparatus, in which a spacer is disposed between the light guide plate and the liquid crystal panel and a space for interposing the optical sheets therebetween is secured, has been proposed. For example, in a display apparatus (display module) described in Patent Document 1, a light guide plate and a liquid crystal panel are arranged to face each other at an appropriate interval by a frame-shaped spacer which is provided in peripheral edge parts, and optical sheets are disposed in an inner space defined by the spacer.
In a method of manufacturing the display apparatus of Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2007-232809, the optical sheets are disposed on one broad surface of the light guide plate, and the spacer is temporarily fixed on the light guide plate by using a double-sided adhesive sheet to surround the optical sheets.
Thereafter, an adhesive is applied to outer peripheries of the spacer, and a display panel is placed on the spacer, and then the adhesive is heated or irradiated with UV rays to cure the same, so as to couple the light guide plate and the liquid crystal panel with each other.